There may be
a spy hiding on your computer, and it's not a spy that
loves you. Find out how to spot spyware and keep
from getting shagged.
With spyware's costing the world billions of dollars
in computer damage, identity theft, and time spent removing
it, many people have just one question: Who are these
people who keep falling for a spy?
Well, I'm here to tell you who these spyware dupes are,
or at least some of them.
They're me.
Yes, I admit it: I harbored spyware on my computer for
nearly three months. Yes, I knew it was there.
But I thought it was the Roger Moore kind of spyware,
the dangerous-in-a-good-way kind of spy, the spy that
only hurts the bad guys, the spy that loves you.
Instead, it was the Mike Meyers kind of spyware, and
it shagged me rotten.
How could I be such a dupe, especially when I, someone
who works entirely on the internet, knew that deep down
all spyware is ultimately more Austin Powers than James
Bond?
How Spyware Shags You
Or, Possible Reasons for Me Harboring Spyware on My
Computer for Three Months
First, just for fun, let s look at the theories at why
people allow spyware to lurk:
They don't know they have spyware, plain and
simple.
They know they have spyware but don't know how
much trouble it can cause.
They know they have spyware and how much trouble
it can cause, but they don't know how to remove it.
They are chronically lazy, stupid, or just perpetual
procrastinators. OK, the terms used aren't quite
that specific, but that s the general idea.
Why Savvy Web Users Get Shagged
Or, The Real Reason I Let Spyware Lurk
So how did the spyware sneak onto my machine?
It didn't have to sneak at all. Technically, at
least, I gave my permission for it to be installed,
as do millions of others.
It began with an article I'd read about an old film
that wasn't being released for some reason or other,
but that had found second life on peer-to-peer file-sharing
networks. I won't say which file-sharing software
I downloaded to get on this network, but no sooner had
I installed it than kazaam! my computer had unwanted
software out the kazoo. I later read in a newspaper
article that permission to install the spyware was included
in the software's standard license agreement, the little
screen filled with text that shows up when you start
to install software.
I had come across a couple pieces of the software a
few times in the next three months. But every
time I tried to uninstall it, it informed me that doing
so would disable the file-sharing software. I
should have just let the file-sharing software go, but
since the little mystery programs hadn't caused any
trouble I could see, I didn't think it was worth the
bother.
Flushing Out the Spies
I finally got rid of the spyware not long ago.
No, I didn't suddenly discover the spyware, or what
is was, or that it was harmful, nor did my lazy, stupid
ways correct themselves.
What happened?
Photoshop.
Well, not actually Photoshop. It was a cheaper
graphics program, but only slightly less resource-hungry.
My six-month-old Centrino laptop couldn't run the graphics
software and my email software at the same time.
I did a Ctrl-alt-delete to see what other programs might
be running quietly out of view. I found a dozen
mysterious applications toiling away, sucking up almost
a quarter of the system resources not taken by the operating
system, anti-virus software, firewall, and other essentials.
A quick scan with an anti-spyware program unmasked the
mysterious intruders as the "companion software" installed
by the file-sharing program.
My computer has been running fine ever since.
Yes, I'm lucky that this spyware was really the adware
kind and not the kind that goes searching for credit
card numbers. In fact, the file-sharing program
claims repeatedly on their homepage that they do not
install spyware in any shape or form, since the only
spying it does is on your web browsing, in order to
serve targeted advertising. But, I've learned
my lesson: even if a spy only steals your computer resources
and not your money, you're still getting shagged.
Joel
Walsh writes for http://www.spyware-refuge.com/ on
how to remove spyware: http://www.spyware-refuge.com/?%20Download%20Spyware%20Removal |
